JP2001196297A - Aligner - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the rate of operation by preventing the stop of an aligner even if an error is detected. SOLUTION: This aligner is provided with an electron beam source that generates an electron beam, an irradiating means that performs irradiation or non-irradiation of the electron beam based on a control signal, a deflecting means that deflects the electron beam generated from the electron beam source corresponding to an exposure pattern, and a converging means that converges the electron beam generated from the electron beam source on an exposed substance. It is provided with a monitoring means that monitors an abnormality of the control signal and a masking means that will not input the control signal to the irradiating means when the control signal is abnormal.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an exposure apparatus using a so-called charged particle beam such as an ion beam or an electron beam, and more particularly to an exposure apparatus in which an improvement in throughput is considered.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional exposure apparatus exposes an object on the basis of a blanking signal which defines a time for irradiating a beam or a time for not irradiating a beam. However, since a blanking signal generating unit that requires high-precision timing control is easily affected by noise, it is important to manage the state of the blanking signal. A technique for detecting a failure of a circuit for controlling a blanking signal is disclosed in
It is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 1-219679.

[0003]

However, in the conventional exposure apparatus, the throughput when an error occurs has not been sufficiently considered. In production equipment such as semiconductor manufacturing equipment, not only yield,
Throughput is also important, minimizing equipment downtime,
It is also required to increase the operation rate of the device.

An object of the present invention is to improve the operation rate by minimizing the stop of the exposure apparatus even when an error is detected.

[0005]

To achieve the above object, the present invention provides an electron beam source for generating an electron beam, irradiation means for irradiating or not irradiating the electron beam based on a control signal, An exposure apparatus comprising: a deflecting unit that deflects an electron beam generated from the electron beam source in accordance with an exposure pattern; and a focusing unit that focuses the electron beam generated by the electron beam source on an exposure object. A monitoring means for monitoring a signal abnormality and a mask means for preventing the control signal from being input to the irradiation means when the control signal is abnormal.

Further, detecting means for detecting the identification information of the control signal, setting means for setting an exposure pattern for restarting the exposure operation based on the identification information detected by the detecting means, and setting by the setting means Means for restarting the exposure operation from the set exposure pattern.

Further, the exposure operation is restarted from the exposure pattern before the exposure pattern corresponding to the identification information.

In an exposure apparatus for exposing an object to be exposed based on a blanking signal defining irradiation or non-irradiation time, when an abnormality of the blanking signal is detected, the exposure apparatus performs exposure based on the blanking signal. The object is configured not to be exposed.

Further, the apparatus further comprises a detecting means for detecting the identification information of the blanking signal in which the abnormality has occurred, and means for restarting the exposure operation based on the identification information detected by the detecting means.

Further, the exposure operation is restarted from an exposure pattern before the exposure pattern corresponding to the identification information.

In an exposure apparatus for exposing an object to be exposed based on a blanking signal defining irradiation or non-irradiation time, a detecting means for detecting an abnormality in the blanking signal, and a detection result obtained by the detecting means. Output.

Further, the detection result includes the number of occurrences for each abnormality content.

[0013] Further, there is provided a warning means for warning when the number of times detected by the detection means exceeds a predetermined number.

Further, the detection result includes information on a position where the abnormality has occurred.

[0015]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be specifically described below with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 1 shows a configuration example of an exposure apparatus according to the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a control processor for generating and calculating control data such as overall control of the entire control unit and exposure pattern data, and 2 denotes a data format conversion and a buffer between the control processor and each control unit. 3 is an input / output interface (hereinafter abbreviated as input / output I / F), 4 is a user interface (hereinafter, user I / F), 5 is a storage device such as a hard disk, and 6 is a storage device. A data buffer memory for temporarily storing the exposure pattern data, 7 a sequence control unit for controlling data processing and operation sequence related to the exposure processing, and 8 an electron beam irradiation time based on the exposure pattern data via the control interface unit And / or an exposure pattern generator 9 for generating data relating to the waiting time. A pattern correction unit 10 for controlling and fine-tuning the aperture;
A blanking control unit 11 generates a blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) in accordance with the irradiation time and / or the waiting time of the electron beam output from the control unit. Reference numeral 11 denotes a blanking pulse waveform (blanking) generated by the blanking control unit. And an error detection unit 12 for detecting whether the signal is normal or not and outputting the detection result. A blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) 12 is output from the blanking control unit 10 based on a signal from the error detection unit 11. Is a mask circuit for masking. These constitute a data control system.

Further, 21 is an electron gun for irradiating a beam,
22, a blanking plate (on / off control aperture) for performing on / off control of the electron beam based on a blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal); 23, a blanking on / off deflector; One deflector,
25 is a second deflector, 26 is a stage on which a workpiece 27 can be placed and movable, 28 is a pattern forming aperture on which various pattern shapes to be exposed are formed, and 29 is a beam correcting for improving accuracy. The beam correcting aperture 30 is a third deflector. These constitute the working system. The control of the stage 26 is performed via the stage control unit 13 by the sequence control unit 7 having received the control data from the control processor 1. Similarly, deflectors 24, 2
Control 5 is also performed via the pattern correction unit 9 by control data from the sequence control unit 7. Also,
The exposure pattern generation unit 8, the pattern correction unit 9, the stage control unit 13 and the like are controlled by the sequence control unit 7 so as to be linked without any contradiction. Here, the first, second, and third deflectors serve as means for deflecting the electron beam in accordance with the exposure pattern, and various apertures serve as means for focusing the electron beam on the exposure object. A desired exposure pattern is formed by combining the patterns formed on the aperture.

The operation of the electron beam exposure apparatus shown in FIG. 1 will be briefly described.

First, in the electron beam exposure apparatus, the exposure pattern data defining the irradiation time and / or the waiting time is output from the control processor 1 to the exposure pattern generator 8 via the control interface 2 and the data buffer memory 6. Is entered. The exposure pattern generation unit 8 generates data (for example, deflection amount data and blanking timing data) relating to the irradiation time and / or waiting time of the electron beam based on the exposure pattern data, and controls the generated data for blanking control. Output to the section 10 and the pattern correction section 9. Upon receiving the output data, the blanking control unit 10 performs the operation shown in FIG.
A blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) as described in (1) is generated. In the electron beam exposure apparatus, the blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal)
, The on / off deflector 23 is controlled to control the electron gun 2
On / off of beam irradiation from 1 is performed. The configuration of the electron gun 21 and the deflector 23 is not limited to the configuration shown in FIG. 1, but is configured to simply turn on / off the beam irradiation based on a blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal). Just do it.

Next, the error detecting section 11 is configured to detect whether or not the blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) generated by the blanking control section 10 has an abnormality. Is output to the mask circuit 12. The mask circuit 12 controls the masking of the input blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) so as not to output the blanking pulse waveform to the deflector 23, that is, not to irradiate the workpiece with a beam. on the other hand,
Returning from the abnormal state to the normal state, the error detection unit 11
Is detected, the error detection unit 11 cancels the mask function of the mask circuit 12, controls to output a blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) to the deflector 23, and returns to the normal operation.

FIG. 2 shows a blanking control unit 10, an error detection unit 11, and a mask circuit 1 in the exposure apparatus shown in FIG.
2 shows an output waveform. Note that the ideal output in the figure means an error-free output from the blanking control unit 10.

As can be seen from the figure, during the period when an error occurs in the output from the blanking control unit 10, the mask circuit 1
Since the second mask function is operated, the output from the mask 12 is an ideal output.

As described above, if the error detection unit 11 and the mask circuit 12 are provided, even if an error occurs in the blanking pulse waveform (blank signal), the workpiece can be exposed based on the error waveform. Is gone. Therefore, the configuration of the present embodiment is suitable when an abnormality occurs that makes the irradiation time longer than the actual time. In particular, this is extremely effective when an abnormal state occurs without exceeding one cycle (a period in which the irradiation time and the waiting time are combined). Then, even if there is an error in the blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal), the operation of the stage 26 and the like is continued and the beam is controlled not to be irradiated only during the occurrence of the error. Do not lower.

Next, the blanking control unit 1 shown in FIG.
A detailed configuration example of 0 and the error detection unit 11 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 shows an example in which a blanking pattern waveform (blanking signal) is generated based on the deflection amount data and blanking timing data generated by the exposure data generating unit 8. The blanking timing data corresponds to the irradiation time, and the deflection amount data corresponds to the waiting time.

In FIG. 3, the blanking control unit 1
0 indicates a settling wait time generation unit 33 that outputs a wait time end flag from the deflection amount data, and generates a pulse width of a blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) from the blanking timing data using the wait time end flag as a trigger. And a blanking signal generator 31.

The error detecting section 11 detects, at a predetermined time interval, a state of a pulse having a blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) output from the blanking signal generating section 31 such as a Hi level or a Low level. And a pulse detection circuit 3 for outputting data relating to the irradiation time and / or the waiting time corresponding to the pulse.
4 and a pattern buffer memory 36 for holding data on the irradiation time or / and the waiting time output from the exposure pattern generator 8, and comparing the output of the pulse detection circuit 34 with the output of the pattern buffer memory 36. A comparison circuit 35 outputs a predetermined signal to the mask circuit 12 based on the signal.

The detailed operation is as follows.

First, in generating the blanking signal, the settling wait time generation unit 33 uses the DA data from the deflection amount data.
The settling time of C (digital / analog converter) is calculated and the waiting time is counted. When the waiting time ends,
The waiting time end flag is sent to the blanking signal generator 31. Upon receiving the waiting time end flag, the blanking signal generator 31 counts the exposure pulse width based on the blanking timing data and sends out a blanking signal. On the other hand, in the error detection unit 11, the pulse detection circuit 34 outputs a blanking signal (a blanking pulse waveform).
The comparison circuit 35 compares the detection result with the irradiation time based on the blanking timing data obtained from the pattern buffer memory 36. The comparison result is obtained by the mask circuit 12 of the blanking control unit.
And immediately masks when the abnormality is detected, and stops blanking. This mask instruction is performed at a timing at which an abnormal signal that exceeds the irradiation time specified by the exposure pattern data is not transmitted.

With the above configuration, the error detection unit 11
An abnormality in the blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) generated by the blanking signal generation unit 31 can be detected, and the mask circuit 12 can be controlled based on the error waveform. Further, by using the mask circuit 12, it is possible to always monitor the state of the blanking pulse waveform (blank signal) generated by the blanking signal generator 31. Note that there is no problem even if the mask circuit 12 is configured to be included in the blanking control unit 10.

Next, an electron beam exposure apparatus will be described in which, when an error waveform is generated in a blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal), the electron beam exposure apparatus returns to a position before the error occurrence and restarts. According to this embodiment, it is extremely effective when an abnormal state occurs for more than one cycle (a period in which the irradiation time and the waiting time are combined).

FIG. 4 shows an example of the configuration of the electron beam exposure apparatus. Note that the basic operation of exposing the workpiece is the same as that of the configuration example shown in FIG. 1, and therefore the differences between the two will be mainly described.

First, in this embodiment, when the error detector 11 detects an error state of the blanking pulse waveform (blank signal), the mask circuit 12 is operated to mask the output from the blanking controller 10. At the same time, a signal is output to the recovery control unit 15 so as to irradiate the error occurrence portion again. The recovery control unit 15 is configured to detect a pattern number of a blanking pattern waveform in which an error has occurred, and restarts from the pattern number or restarts from a pattern number returned by a predetermined number from the pattern number. Thus, a signal is output to the control processor 1.
When the control processor 1 outputs a signal for restarting, the sequence control unit 7 controls the stage control unit 13 to move the stage to a position corresponding to the pattern number to restart, and restart the exposure operation. I do. Naturally, the mask circuit 12 is controlled to release the mask function before resuming.

FIG. 5 shows a blanking control unit 10, an error detection unit 11, and a mask circuit 1 in the exposure apparatus shown in FIG.
2 shows an output waveform of the recovery control unit 15. Note that the ideal output in the figure means an error-free output from the blanking control unit 10.

As can be seen, when an error occurs in the output from the blanking control unit 10, the mask circuit 12
And the recovery control unit 1
The exposure operation is stopped based on a stop command from the control unit 5. Then, according to a restart command from the recovery control unit 15,
For example, the exposure operation is restarted based on the data after the pulse where the error occurred.

FIGS. 6 and 7 show the blanking control unit 10, the error detection unit 11, and the recovery control unit 1 shown in FIG.
5 shows a configuration example. The comparison circuit 35 detects an abnormality based on a comparison result between the pulse detection circuit 34 and the pattern buffer memory 36, and uses the detection signal to detect an abnormality.
2 is similar to that of the above-described embodiment, and subsequent operations will be described.

First, when the comparison circuit 35 detects an error state based on the comparison result, it inputs a detection signal (error flag) to the recovery control section 15 together with the error content. Also,
The pattern number of the pattern held in the pattern buffer memory 36, that is, the pattern number to be compared by the comparison circuit 35 is input to the recovery control unit 15. In addition,
The error content sent to the recovery control unit includes whether the irradiation time and / or the waiting time of the blanking pulse waveform (blanking signal) is larger (longer) than the comparison value held in the pattern buffer memory 36,
Is it small (short)?

The recovery control unit 15 sends a temporary stop request to the sequence control unit 7 to temporarily stop the entire device (or a part thereof) so that there is no inconsistency in the entire control unit, and to output from the error detection unit 11. The pattern number to be performed is stored in the pattern buffer memory 43. Note that the object to be held may not be the pattern number, but the error detection unit 1
1 may be configured to hold the exposure pattern data itself held in the pattern buffer memory 36.
In this case, the recovery sequencer 42 is configured to detect the pattern number of the held data.

Thereafter, the held pattern number is detected by the recovery sequencer 42 and output to the recovery pattern address generator 44. The recovery pattern address generation 44 generates a pattern number to be restarted from the detection result, and outputs the generated data to the control processor 1 via the control interface 2.
The control processor 1 controls the sequence control unit 7 and the like to execute a restart based on the received data.

When restarting, it is necessary to release the mask function of the mask circuit 12.
Or by adding data for a release command to the data of the pattern number to be restarted or restarted, and the exposure pattern generator 8 may release the mask function based on the data for the release command.

The recovery control unit 15 or the control processor 1 may be configured to determine whether to restart based on the content of the error. For example, a configuration may be adopted in which restart is performed unless predetermined error details continue or error details exceed a predetermined number of times.

Further, it is also possible to operate the mask circuit 12 to mask the output from the blanking control unit 10 without stopping all the exposure operations in the exposure apparatus. In this case, the error detection unit 11 may detect the error state a plurality of times before restarting.
In this case, it is preferable that the control processor 1 performs control so as not to repeat the restart operation each time. That is, it is preferable to perform control such that the received error detection signal is ignored after the first error state detection signal is received and before the restart. When an error detection signal is received a predetermined number of times or more, outputting an error signal by an alarm or the like is very effective in improving usability. If the number of receptions when an error signal is generated can be freely set, usability will be further improved.

Next, a description will be given of an embodiment in which the exposure pattern data held in the pattern buffer memory 43 is held and it is determined whether or not to restart using the data.

In this embodiment, the configuration is almost the same as the configuration shown in FIG. 7 described above. However, the recovery control unit 15 outputs the abnormality detection result (exposure pattern address, exposure content, pulse width until abnormality occurs, etc.). It is held in the error pattern buffer memory 43. At the same time, the recovery control unit 15 transmits a temporary stop request to the sequence control unit 7, and temporarily stops the entire device (or a part thereof) so that there is no inconsistency in the entire control unit. Recovery sequencer 4 in recovery control unit 15
2 transmits, to the exposure pattern control unit 8, the exposure pattern data in which an abnormality has occurred, stored in the error pattern buffer memory 43. At this time, the output section of the blanking signal is masked. The blanking control unit 10 generates a blanking signal based on the exposure pattern data in which the abnormality has occurred. The error detector 11 monitors this signal for the presence or absence of an abnormality in the same manner as described above. As a result, if there is no abnormality, the sequence control unit 10 or the control processor 1 transmits an exposure pattern in which an abnormality has occurred, or a restart instruction signal from the previous pattern data. When the exposure is restarted, if a blanking signal generated from one piece of exposure pattern data is being transmitted, a blanking signal is generated again using the exposure pattern data, and the blanking signal is generated until abnormal termination. The mask is removed, and the mask is removed from the place where the abnormal termination has occurred, and the transmission of the blanking signal to the electron beam generator is restarted. If the settling time is halfway, blanking is restarted after the specified time has elapsed again. On the other hand, if an abnormality occurs again, the recovery processing is repeated up to the number of times specified in advance. If the recovery processing still does not become normal, it is determined that there is no sudden abnormality, and the exposure processing ends.

FIG. 8 shows the operation mode of the recovery sequencer in this case. Upon receiving the error flag, the recovery sequencer 42 transitions from the normal operation state -Normal (45) to the recovery processing state -Recovery (46). As a result of the recovery processing, when there is no abnormality and there is no error flag, the state transits to the normal state (45). However, if recovery is not possible here, the state transits to the Stop state (47),
The recovery sequencer 42 stops. By stopping the recovery sequencer 42, the sequence control unit 7 starts the stop processing of the device.

FIG. 9 shows an example of the error pattern buffer memory. If an error occurs in a blanking signal corresponding to certain exposure pattern data, the recovery control unit 15
Performs a recovery process based on the exposure pattern address held in the error pattern buffer memory 43. At this time, when restarting from the exposure pattern where the error occurred, the error may not be able to be reproduced because the status of the operating part such as the stage is different from that at the time of the error. Consider restarting more. That is, in FIG. 9, the structure of the error pattern buffer memory is FIFO (First-in-First-Out), and the number of stages is equal to the number of return patterns (n) at the time of restart. It is possible to restart based on the previous data. F described in FIG.
The IFO is an example of the structure of the error pattern buffer memory, and any structure may be used as long as it can trace the exposure pattern address.

As described above, by enabling the restart from the data before the exposure pattern in which the abnormality has occurred, the error state can be maintained for a while (for example, a time spanning a plurality of cycles) for some reason. It is effective for

Next, an embodiment suitable for analyzing the cause of an error will be described with reference to FIG.

In FIG. 10, the error flag output from the error detecting section 11 is stored in the log memory 16 via the abnormal log collecting section 17. For example, the abnormal log collection unit 17 collects the contents of the main flip-flop (F / F) of the circuit that generates the blanking signal of the blanking control unit, and stores the result in the log memory 16. That is, the configuration is such that the content of the error can be determined using a flip-flop (F / F). The error content may be shorter or longer than the desired irradiation time or waiting time. The log memory 16 stores F /
The content of F is kept in the first log memory 51, and thereafter, the sequence controller 7 or the recovery controller 1
5 until a log stop signal is received from the log buffer 52.
Continue to collect. If it exceeds the implemented log memory size, overwrite the oldest data. Note that the size of the log memory is determined according to the restrictions on mounting the device. Also,
The log memory 16 may be stored in another database or the like without being provided in the exposure apparatus itself.

Next, the analysis screen shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 is generated using the information stored in the log memory 16.

FIG. 11 is a view showing the number of outputs for each type in which an error has occurred. The type of error occurred in one cycle, the error occurred in two cycles,
There is a method in which a discrimination is made in accordance with a cycle (time) that occurs continuously, such as an error that occurs in three cycles, or a case in which the pulse is longer or shorter than a desired pulse waveform. The number of occurrences is configured to be counted in a predetermined area such as in a chip or a wafer. When the number of occurrences is counted by limiting the area, the configuration is such that the identification information of the chip is included in the log memory 16 so as to know which chip has an error. Further, in order to count the number of errors that have occurred in a specific area designated by a user or the like, the configuration may be such that position information at which an error is detected is obtained from the sequence control unit 7 or the stage control unit 13. Alternatively, the position (address) in the wafer is calculated from the pattern number of the pattern in which the error has occurred, and the number of errors occurring in a specific area is counted based on the calculation result.

If the number of generated errors is classified and output, it is possible to determine whether the error has occurred regularly or unexpectedly, and whether the error should be dealt with. Can be determined. In the case of a sudden error, there is no need to take countermeasures because there is no reproducibility.However, it is possible to grasp reproducible errors by classifying as described above, so that exposure can be performed early and appropriately. It becomes possible to take measures against devices and the like.

Next, FIG. 12 shows a display in which the position where an error has occurred is displayed, and the position where the error has occurred in a chip formed on a semiconductor wafer is displayed. The numbers attached to the chips indicate the chip addresses in the wafer. In order to display the position where the error has occurred, the position information at which the error is detected is obtained from the sequence control unit 7 or the stage control unit 13 or the position in the wafer is determined based on the pattern number of the pattern where the error has occurred. It is configured to calculate the position (address),
The position information is configured to be stored in the log memory 16. Further, the configuration is such that the chip address of the chip in which the error is detected is also stored at the same time. With this configuration, when a chip to be analyzed is specified, error position information of the specified chip can be extracted using the above-mentioned stored information, and it is possible to display based on the position information. Further, if the position information is configured to be transmitted to another inspection apparatus, it is possible to automatically align the position with the position where the error has occurred and to perform a detailed inspection.

For example, it is possible to test the electrical characteristics of the completed wafer and create a fail bit map of the wafer. The fail bit position data and the error occurrence position data shown in FIG. If the matching is used, the error that matches the matching result is finally a bad bit.Therefore, if the matching ratio is high or the number is large, the error here tends to affect the yield. I can judge. In particular, it is possible to examine the effects of masking and the effects of restarting, as described above.

Next, a case where the blanking control section and the electron beam source are formed in separate cases and a transmission line is present therebetween will be described with reference to FIG.

In this case, in order to detect an abnormality until the blanking signal reaches the blanking deflector 23, a redundant separate system 44 is provided on the blanking signal transmission line 43, and this signal is transmitted to the inside of the housing where the electron gun is located. Alternatively, a comparison is made by a comparator 41 provided in the vicinity, and when the comparison result does not match, a blanking signal to the electron gun is masked. The pulse width at this time is transmitted to the blanking pulse monitor 1 via the transmission line 45.
Send to 1. Based on this result, the recovery processing described above is performed by the recovery control unit 15.

As described above, a means for monitoring the blanking signal of the electron beam exposure apparatus and masking the blanking signal when a failure occurs, or performing recovery processing based on the exposure pattern data at the time of the failure. Provision of a means for performing the above-described operation makes it possible to shorten the recovery time in the event of a failure with low reproducibility. That is, it is possible to shorten the time from failure detection to recovery and improve the throughput.

By providing means for logging the internal state when a failure occurs, it is possible to easily analyze the cause of the failure.

[0058]

According to the present invention, the operation rate can be improved by stopping the exposure apparatus as much as possible.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing one configuration example of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a timing chart of each block constituting the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing one configuration example of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing one configuration example of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a timing chart of each block constituting the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing one configuration example of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is an operation mode diagram of the recovery sequencer.

FIG. 9 is a configuration diagram of an error pattern memory buffer.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing an analysis screen of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a diagram showing one analysis screen of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram showing one configuration example of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Control processor 2 ... Control interface unit 3 ... Input / output device 4 ... Storage device 5 ... User interface 6 ... Data buffer memory 7 ... Sequence control unit 8 ... Exposure pattern generation unit 9 Pattern correction unit 10 Blanking control unit 11 Blanking pulse monitoring unit 12 Recovery control unit 13 Stage 14 Log collection control unit 15 ... Log memory

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing from the front page (72) Inventor Kimiaki Ando 882 Ma, Hitachinaka-shi, Ibaraki F-term in Hitachi Measuring Instruments Group, Ltd. (Reference) 2H097 AA03 CA16 LA10 5F056 BC10 CB05

Claims (10)

[Claims] An electron beam source for generating an electron beam, irradiation means for irradiating or not irradiating the electron beam based on a control signal, and an electron beam generated from the electron beam source corresponding to an exposure pattern. An exposure apparatus comprising: a deflecting unit that deflects the light; and a converging unit that converges the electron beam generated from the electron beam source onto an exposure object. An exposure apparatus, comprising: mask means for preventing the control signal from being input to the irradiation means in some cases. A detecting means for detecting identification information of the control signal; a setting means for setting an exposure pattern for restarting an exposure operation based on the identification information detected by the detecting means; 2. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising: means for restarting the exposure operation from the exposure pattern. 3. The exposure apparatus according to claim 2, wherein an exposure operation is restarted from an exposure pattern before an exposure pattern corresponding to the identification information. 4. An exposure apparatus for exposing an object to be exposed on the basis of a blanking signal defining irradiation or non-irradiation time, when an abnormality of the blanking signal is detected, the exposure apparatus performs exposure on the basis of the blanking signal. An exposure apparatus characterized in that an object is not exposed. 5. A detecting means for detecting identification information of a blanking signal in which an abnormality has occurred, and means for restarting an exposure operation based on the identification information detected by the detecting means. An exposure apparatus according to claim 4. 6. The exposure apparatus according to claim 5, wherein an exposure operation is restarted from an exposure pattern before an exposure pattern corresponding to the identification information. 7. An exposure apparatus for exposing an object to be exposed on the basis of a blanking signal that defines irradiation or non-irradiation time, detecting means for detecting an abnormality in the blanking signal, and detecting a result of the detection by the detecting means. An exposure apparatus characterized by outputting. 8. An exposure apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said detection result includes the number of occurrences of each abnormality content. 9. An exposure apparatus according to claim 7, further comprising warning means for warning when the number of times detected by said detection means exceeds a predetermined number. 10. The exposure apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the detection result includes information on a position where the abnormality has occurred.